Teaching Outside of Your Specialism by @molin_bryan

Name: Bryan Molin
Twitter name: @molin_bryan
Sector: Secondary
Subject taught (if applicable):
Position: Assistant Principal
What is your advice about? Teaching outside of specialism

1: Have a positive attitude. Teaching outside of your comfort zone is a chance to develop your skills.

2: Make sure you have a firm grasp of the key concepts you are teaching. There is nothing worse than to muck up on the basics.

3: If students ask questions you cannot answer in the lessons, be honest and tell them you will get back to them next lesson, or even better set the question for homework.

4: Establish a culture of learning in the class. The fact that you are also learning the subjext adds a degree of comradeship with students.

5: Work with subject specialists, either in person or through twitter to get advice and information. Don’t be afraid to ask. You owe it to your students.

Subject Knowledge for Reading Comprehension by @mrnickhart

Name: Nick Hart
Twitter name: @mrnickhart
Sector: Primary
Subject taught (if applicable):
Position: Deputy Head
What is your advice about? Subject knowledge for reading comprehension

1: Read “Time to Talk” by Jean Gross. 

2: Read “Bringing Words” to Life by Isabel Beck. 

3: Read “Developing Reading Comprehension” by Margaret Snowling.

4: Read “Understanding and Teaching Reading Comprehension” by Jane Oakhill. 

5: Read “Tell Me” by Aidan Chambers.

Primary Maths by @antonipolster

Name: None given
Twitter name: @antonipolster
Sector: Primary
Subject taught (if applicable): Maths
Position: Learning support teacher
What is your advice about? Primary maths

1: Don’t feel guilty about not using manipulatives. Manipulatives are overrated and should be used sparingly.

2: Subject knowledge is also very important at primary level . Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you don’t understand the maths you are trying to teach.

3: Maths games, trails and software are no substitute for actually teaching maths. Again, use sparingly.

4: If a child leaves primary school without knowing addition and multiplication tables we have failed.

5: Ask lots of questions in class and check everyone’s response using whiteboards/ number fans or any other resource at your disposal.

Subject Knowledge by @carolinecreaby

Name: Caroline Creaby
Twitter name: @carolinecreaby
Sector: Secondary
Subject taught (if applicable): Economics and Business
Position: Assistant Headteacher
What is your advice about? Subject knowledge

1: Read a new book or an article in your subject and tell your students about it (whether it’s relevant to your scheme of learning or not).

2: Hear a subject specialist speak – look at your local university for lectures, go to one and tell your students about it. Consider inviting experts into your school to talk.

3: Make it clear in every lesson how interesting you think the topic is and why.

4: Join your subject association and consider getting involved at some point.

5: Consider being an examiner – formal assessment in your subject is interesting and the experience sharpens your knowledge about how to prepare students for their exams.